The Home Company makes its presence known
Building a new home is an exciting endeavor, but building one for the annual Street of Dreams is an exceptional opportunity. Dave Vogtman and co-owner Nick Dolphins with The Home Company embraced that opportunity and custom-designed a 5,000 square foot prairie-style home inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright. It was recently featured during the 2014 MOBA Street of Dreams in the South Hamptons development on 238th and Q Streets.
Most of the homes Vogtman and Dolphins build are in the $250,000-$400,000 price range, so this was a chance for them to showcase what they can do within a higher price point. “We designed the floor plan with family in mind,” Vogtman said. “It’s very open and communal in the main parts of the house, but it also has private retreat areas throughout.” Some of those include a sitting area and porch off the master bedroom, a main floor office with a striking wood sliding barn door, and study areas off the kids’ bedrooms upstairs.
They also incorporated features that many homeowners now request, such as hidden pantries, custom-built drop zones, and upper level laundry capabilities. Vogtman said energy efficient homes are also gaining in popularity, and they built this one to use 36 percent of the energy of a normal home built today. “The entire house uses a geothermal system and is sealed with Environdri, making it the third best rated energy efficient home in Omaha.”
The six bedroom, five bathroom home is equally impressive from an interior design perspective. Vogtman asked designer Emily Bergsten with Fluff Interior Design to work with them on every aspect, from floor finishes to linens. “One of my goals was to impart that the house was special but still feel homey, attainable, and realistic,” Bergsten explained. “I wanted people to walk in and say, ‘I could live here.’”
To achieve that look and feel, she started with a neutral color palette—gray walls, white trim, and black doors. Then Bergsten added pops of color with yellow, teal, and some lime green. “Gray is the perfect neutral backdrop that provides a light, bright feel,” she said. “The yellows and teals were colors that appeared in the furniture we used from Ethan Allen, so it was easy to coordinate.”
A large round yellow kitchen table in the eating area is a focal point, and Bergsten said she ran with it from there, incorporating the colors into the drapery fabric, artwork, pillows, and accessories. “It’s a layering process,” she stated. “I start with the larger items like flooring, tile, and cabinets, then move to hardware, lighting, mirrors, and artwork. This home has such high ceilings we were able to use large statement pieces of furniture and an entire wall of accent tiles, which you don’t see in many homes.”
Other touches that make the home special include double-stacked granite countertops and open shelving in the kitchen as well as in the laundry room, custom-built lockers in the mud room drop zone, built-in bookcases in the kids’ rooms, and sconce wall lighting throughout the house. The walkout basement includes a theater room, pool table room, extra high ceilings, and large windows that look out onto the tree-lined back yard.
Both Bergsten and Vogtman were ecstatic with the dream home’s end result. Vogtman said the feedback from a majority of those who visited the Street of Dreams homes indicated this house was their favorite in terms of floor plan and interior design. They also both agreed the best part of the house is its livability. “We’re big on decorating for real life,” Bergsten said. “Creating spaces that function as well as they are beautiful.”
